Court petition filed against Boeing over Asiana crash

CHICAGO — A Chicago law firm says it plans to sue aircraft manufacturer Boeing Co. on behalf of 83 people who were on the Asiana Airlines flight that crash-landed in San Francisco.

Ribbeck Law Chartered says in a news release that it filed a petition Tuesday in Cook County Circuit Court in Chicago to help preserve evidence in the July 6 crash. Three people were killed when the Boeing 777 clipped a seawall at the end of a runway.

Ribbeck says additional pleadings will be filed against Asiana Airlines and several component parts manufacturers.

The firm says the crash might have been caused by a mechanical malfunction of the auto-throttle. It also says some sliding ramps reportedly opened inside the plane, injuring passengers and blocking their exit.